What's Meant To Be
by Chelsea Oz
Summary: ...Will always find a way. Sam experiences anticipation and anxiety the day before Diane Chambers comes into his life. Coach and Carla confirm his beliefs that something is definitely brewing and about to begin. One shot.


It was a chilly September afternoon. It was a Friday and every Friday no matter what the weather or season would always signal a beginning to a long weekend. Not that Sam Malone cared much about the intensity of what weekends may come. He had long since learned to shake off the long nights with little to no chance of being able sit down. He had learned to zone out the obnoxious customers except when he knew Carla would be about to lose her cool. As long as the people kept pouring in and drinks were being served, all was right for him. That bar was not just his job but his life. He considered himself lucky to have friends to call employees and friends that would be customers every night.

There was something about this coming weekend though; he could feel it in his bones. There was nothing special or fancy going on but he felt great excitement about something. Sam could feel the restlessness in him and his fingers were tapping the steering wheel all the way to Cheers. There was no music in the car; he didn't feel it necessary this time. When he pulled up in the parking lot, he jumped out of the car and ran down the steps. He had a real let's-do-this mentality as he unlocked the door and began his usual open-up routine. He needed to do daily inventory, take temps on the fridges, and cut up lemons, limes, orange peels and celery stalks for any number of drinks that needed them at the ready. Oh yeah, dish up the maraschino cherries, too. There's always at least one Shirley Temple...

"Wind's in the east, mist coming in," Coach said in a sing-song voice. He had waltzed in with the wind and premature fall leaves. "Like something's brewin' and bout to begin. Can't put me finger on what lies in store. But I fear what's to happen has all happened before."

Sam was taken aback by Coach's dramatic entrance. He gave his friend a round of applause when he was finished.

"How ya doin', Sam?" Coach then non-chalantly asked.

"What was that all about?"

"What?"

"Your grand entrance a minute ago. A little spooky there, Coach," Sam admitted. He really was spooked for a minute because whatever Coach just said hit the nail on the head his own emotions.

"Oh, there's nothing spooky about _Mary Poppins_!"

" _Mary Poppins_?"

"Yeah, one of my favorite movies."

Sam had to laugh now. Only his friend and mentor Ernie Pantusso could walk into a room and quote Mary Poppins and not feel stupid about it. That's why everybody loved Coach anyway. The guy had no idea how off the radar his mind could be. That was when Carla walked in. She was too busy checking out the paper to pay attention to either one of them.

"What's new in the news, Carla?" Sam asked out of curiousity.

"Daily horoscopes," Carla replied without looking up from her paper.

"What does it say about you and me?" Coach wondered. They were both Aries.

"To brace ourselves for new circumstances in a nutshell," Carla answered as she finally put the paper down to put on her apron.

"What about me?" Sam asked.

"Since when do you care? You always make fun of me for paying this stuff any mind."

It was true; Sam was never a new age, spiritual kind of guy. He just never found it credible. Nevertheless, Carla picked up the paper again and it didn't take her long to find his horoscope. He was born on May 1st so he would be a Taurus. They were always underneath an Aries and Carla always wished out loud that her Taurus boss and hero could be under her Aries self.

"Dear Taurus," Carla read. "You may never know how much a person can touch your life. A charming stranger could very well may be an important person to you for the rest of your life. Always remember to be kind."

"Well," Sam liked the sound of that. "Too bad that wasn't your horoscope. I'm always telling you to be kind and you won't listen to me..."

"Stuff it, Sam," Carla retorted, angrily. Sam just laughed it off. It was funny to make her mad sometimes.

"Good evening, everybody," bellowed Mr. Norm Peterson.

"Norm!" The trio chanted with a unison glee. There was a melancholy look on Norm's face as he plunked on his favorite barstool. Sam was always right there with a mug of beer for his good friend.

"How's life?" Sam asked, knowing the answer would be depressing in a funny way that only Norm could deliver.

"Not kind," Norm replied. Sam and Coach looked back at Carla and laughed. Carla gave them the evil eye as she went to go wait on the new customers who just walked in.

"What's so funny?" Norm asked.

"Life itself, Norm," Sam said with a certainty. "Life itself."


End file.
